


Nerdy

by NekoAbi



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Allusion to Alcohol, Bullying, Graffiti, Human AU, M/M, Mention of Cigarette, Mention of Knives, school au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 05:51:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16886832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoAbi/pseuds/NekoAbi
Summary: Logan is the definition of a Lone Wolf at school. So, why was he finding himself focused on Roman, the popular kid? He's not exactly sure about how to deal with these problems, but he needs to find an outlet.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic and the events within was inspired by a song called [Nerdy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xieHdJQjEI) by a british band called Busted. For the longest time, it would come up when I was listening to my music and I'd immediately think Logince - so I had to write it someday heh.

From a very young age, Logan had learnt how to enjoy being alone and where he felt he belonged. He’d always felt too different to be involved with the rest of the kids, they’d all found some kind of niche group to fall into early on. Of course, it all had to end up highly stereotypical with the in groups and out groups, right down to which of them got along and which of them got into disagreements. This was almost always present in the cafeteria at lunch, which was why Logan stayed away for as long as he could. He went there to eat but left as soon as he was done in order to spend the rest of his time in the library. This had been his life for years, and it was comfortable.

There was no way the world would let him live this way. Though, of course, it was not as though there was this ever-driving force that pushed his life in a certain direction, it was all purely through his own choices and will. This fact made it ever more frustrating to Logan that he’d somehow developed a fixation on Roman Prince.

It had to be him, of all the people in the world. The most popular kid in school, the most outgoing and social of all of them, the biggest personality in the room, the most infuriatingly loud, obnoxious, conceited, gorgeous, self-centred human in the building.

Logan physically shook his head to bring himself out of his thoughts. It was unlike him to be day-dreaming. The paper in front of him came back into focus and he read through the hand-written words penned before him, only for his attention to be caught by a loud group walking past the open library doors.

He recognised the faces as they walked by but had no connection to them at all. They were loudly laughing and joking, each trying to be louder than the others around them. Then it was all gone. It was practically silent, or at least the noise was muffled. All because he’d come into view. From the centre of the group.

It was almost as though the seconds stretched longer just so Logan could take in all the details of the boy. The styled hair, the bright smile, the lean shape to his body, the style of his clothing, even the boisterous laugh that burst through the haze of noise.

Then he was gone. The group walked past the door, out of sight and Logan was jolted back to where he was. His head ducked to cover the blush he felt spreading across his cheeks. Quickly, he flipped to a new page in the notepad in front of him and he began writing something brand new.

One of the group’s voices somehow came loose from the soundscape it was lost in previously, even from as far away as they were.

“Hey Ro, you’re definitely coming to this party this weekend.” It was a statement, not a question.

“Of course. Wouldn’t miss it.” Roman’s response was no surprise to Logan, and he felt himself drifting back into frustration, this time at the other boy.

How he could just let someone else make this decision for him and then Roman just completely go along with it, with no hesitation or questions. Just a simple, yes!

It was infuriating. How someone with so little agency could grasp Logan’s attention and thoughts like this. He needed Roman to be less intriguing, less interesting.

He continued writing for a while, stopping periodically to consider his words, before he checked the time. 15 minutes before the last classes of the day were to begin, and he’d just finished. Perfect.

Logan gathered up his belongings, swinging his bag onto his shoulder. He made his way out of the library and towards his classroom, the paper he’d been writing on folded neatly in his palm.

The classroom was still deserted as the rest of the students were using every last second of their lunch break to the fullest, almost desperate for it to go on longer. Logan, however, made his way to his usual seat.

Halfway, he paused and considered a chair that sat at the centre table of the room. Chewing the inside of his lip, Logan darted between the chairs and tables before ending up standing at the chair. There was no turning back. He knew he had to do this.

Taking a pen out of the front pocket of his messenger bag, Logan quickly scrawled a name on the top of the folded paper. It then fell onto the chair.

Logan took his usual seat as if nothing had happened, preparing his notepad and books and pens for the next lesson. He buried himself in one of the books as the door opened, revealing a couple more students. Slowly, but surely a third of the class had filed in and taken their seats. The teacher appeared, along with the rest of the students. What had been a fairly peaceful room soon become what felt like a prison of noise. Logan was trapped, but had to endure it all the same, knowing it would soon be quelled.

He also couldn’t help himself. The book dropped down to the desk, and Logan kept his gaze on it for the most part, but this position was much more suited for indulging his curiosity. He kept flicking his eyes over to the chair, seeing it still unoccupied. There was this awful sinking feeling in his stomach as he questioned his choice.

It was too late, Logan reasoned to himself, what was done was done. As if on cue, the table’s occupants appeared and moved into their usual seating arrangement.

Logan watched out of the corner of his eye as Roman pulled out the chair, his attention focused still on the conversation with his companions. But the white of the paper managed to catch his eye and he picked it up curiously. It was clear he noticed his name on it, as he was about to unfold it right then and there.

“What is that you got there?” The student sat next to Roman leaned closer to have a better look, all they were able to see was Roman’s name written across the front. “No way. Is this a love note? Oh my god, this has to be a love note.” The student was gathering everyone’s attention, and Logan could practically feel his heartbeat in his every extremity. “Go on! Open it, let’s see this.”

Roman moved quicker, putting the note into his bag, “I wouldn’t want to give someone special treatment.” He’d gathered himself and was commanding the room, “Of course, this is nothing new and so I don’t want to single any one person out for- “

He was cut off by the teacher who wanted to finally start the lesson. Logan was filled with some indiscernible emotion. He felt relief, of course. But there was also this sense of disgust at the arrogance that was just displayed before him. How could he do that? How could he say that?

The lesson passed uneventfully, Logan’s mind still hung up on what has transpired. It was frustrating. He didn’t want this. He just wanted to focus. He couldn’t have been more thankful when they were free to leave, and he was finally able to get away from the ever-distracting boy. The rest of the day passed without incident, and Logan found himself making his way back over to the library to wait for his lift home.


	2. Chapter 2

Upon walking into the library, Logan felt as though he could relax. There were hardly any students around as most of them were eager to leave school grounds and enjoy the weekend for as long as possible. Due to the lack of students, the few library staff were accompanied by members of the student help team at one of the larger tables. Logan approached the group.

Each of the faculty members were fairly old, but Logan was not one to pass much judgement on that. They were always kind to him, not too talkative with him but always willing to allow him in on their conversation.

Today was a day where he wished to join in their group. As he got close, the librarian looked up and caught his eye.

“Hi Logan. Waiting for your brother again today?” She smiled sweetly.

He nodded, “Yes. Would you mind if I sit with you all while I wait?”

“Of course!”

Logan pulled up a spare chair, moving into a space that was created for him. While he may not have fully embraced the conversation, he wasn’t expected to. The staff members were interested in his lessons and interests and he did indulge them from time to time, but they didn’t press him for much. Instead, they spoke around him and let him jump in if he felt like it.

It was comfortable, and Logan was thankful as it helped pass the time quickly. He soon heard his brother’s voice coming from far down the hallway. He slowly moved the notebook he was writing on into his bag and stood, when a person came through the front doors. But it wasn’t his brother.

Of course, It would have to be Roman.

Logan was suddenly feeling highly defensive. He felt his entire body tense as Roman approached. He tried to be casual, almost as if he hasn’t really noticed Roman. But he’d been watching the other the entire time.

Roman smiled at his classmate, “Hello Logan. What a lovely surprise it is to see you here!” His voice was highly sarcastic, which definitely did not sit well with a tense Logan. “And sitting with the faculty? Always thought you were more of a lone wolf, but I suppose it does make sense” He laughed, but there was an underlying layer of fakeness to it.

“Oh, is that so?” Logan was short, to the point, unwilling to let someone his age speak down to him. Popularity was fickle, it shouldn’t allow people to think they’re better than others. That’s why Logan was willing to talk like that.

Roman picked up on the tension and almost shrunk back a little, “I’m sorry if I offended you at all, it’s just that, I’ve always noticed you sit alone, and so it surprised me that you were-“

“That I was able to enjoy spending time around other people? Or, due to your previous comment, it wasn’t really such a surprise due to the fact that I am around people who are not my own age? Is that what you were truly trying to say, Roman? Would not be the first time someone has made that observation, and I highly doubt it will be the last. If you wish to attempt to insult me, at least find a way to be original about it.”

With the final word, Logan stalked out of the library and turned sharply, almost colliding with his brother who was waiting outside.

“Logan, that wasn’t very nice… You should go back in and-“ Logan stopped his brother with a raised hand.

“I don’t want to hear it, Patton. I’ll wait outside.” He left swiftly, not saying a word more.

Patton watched his brother walk away, knowing he should give him the space he wanted. Instead, he turned and entered the library. He found Roman standing at the desk with the librarian, talking.

“Hey Ro!” Patton grabbed his friend’s attention.

“Hi Patton, I was just about to come out to you.” He was so composed, smiling effortlessly. He thanked the librarian and made to leave, with Patton on his heels. Once out of the room, he deflated.

Patton immediately pulled the boy into a tight hug, “I’m sorry about him. I’m sure he doesn’t mean it. I mean, you guys have never spoken before that. He’s just defensive…”

Roman laughed softly, returning the hug, “I believe you. I just can’t help but consider that it likely didn’t come out of nowhere…” He pulled away and looked at Patton, “Do you know if anyone has been rude to him before?” There was something unsaid in the question, but Patton picked up on it.

“I don’t know, Roman. I would really hope not…” The pair began walking slowly towards the front entrance of the school, “But it’s not like Logan would say anything. He’s more likely to keep it to himself and work out of it on his own time.”

Roman took a deep breath of the fresh air as the doors were swung open. He looked over the empty parking spaces outside the school, eventually focusing on the boy who was leaning against the side of Patton’s car. There was something about the intensity of the boy that was lingering in his mind, but he wouldn’t dare say a word about it. As if he heard, Logan turned his head and made direct eye contact. Roman froze.

Very quickly, he turned to Patton with a smile, “Well, I hope you enjoy your weekend, Pat. See you next week.”

Patton quickly gave him another hug before making his way over towards where his brother was waiting, “You too, Ro! Remember, I’m only a short walk and a phone call away! If you ever need me!”

Roman chuckled to himself, watching the colliding of the two completely different boys before he began making his way back home, using the walk as an attempt to clear his head.

Patton waved to Roman as they drove past him, Logan pointedly ignoring him.

“So, what was that back there, Lo?”

“It was nothing, Patton. Please don’t worry about it.”

“Hm… well, if you say so. But, can you just promise me one thing?”

“And what is that?”

“If anything’s getting to you, or anyone’s being rude to you… you’d let me know?”

A moment of silence passed.

“Of course.”


	3. Chapter 3

The weekend was far too welcome. Normally, it wouldn’t hold much significance for Logan, other than giving him time alone in the comfort of his own room, but this week it meant much more. It meant time away from the distraction that plagued his life, the distraction who he’d definitely pushed further away from himself.

Usually, that would be a wonderful thing. He’d normally be pleased that there would be one less person to invade his space, but he found himself being unhappy with pushing him away. For some reason that he just couldn’t fathom, he wanted the boy closer. He wanted to be the only one Roman would talk to, the only one taking up his attention, despite never getting any of it prior to the Friday just gone.

Logan needed to get out of the house, the air in his room felt far too stuffy. So, when Patton came to ask him if he’d run to the shop nearby to get him a list of snacks, he was agreeing before he even saw what was on the list.

“Patton, all of these are almost purely sugar-based…” Logan chastised as he read through the piece of paper in his hands.

Patton just waved a hand dismissively, “It’s supposed to be, Logan! I’m going to a stay-up-all-night-over with a friend, and they desperately need sugar in order to not sleep and so do I! It’s also just a form of comfort!”

The bright smile that was shown to him stopped Logan’s next argument. Instead, he just sighed in defeat, “Well, fine. I’ll get you as many of these as I can find…”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ll pay you back, I promise!” Patton called out to his brother as he walked towards the front door.

Logan’s lip quirked up into a gentle smile. He knew Patton would pay him back, even though this was Logan’s way of repaying his brother for all the impromptu treats and trips he’d taken Logan on. He’d just have to hide the receipt later.

He stepped out of the door and closed it behind him, thinking about how he’d expect his brother to just know the prices of everything he was about to buy. As he turned to walk out towards the street, Logan stopped and whirled back around, pretending to check that he had everything.

How on this Earth is he here right now? Logan practically screamed in his head. He peeked to the side, waiting to see the retreating body. Once it was in his line of sight, he turned and went to follow the person.

Why is he going the same way? What is going on? Why right now? Logan cursed the world for letting Roman be here. He walked slower than the other boy, letting him move ahead. He did notice that Roman was clearly walking with purpose, as if he didn’t have time or had something extremely important to accomplish. This piqued Logan’s curiosity and he knew he’d have to follow the boy if their paths diverged.

Somehow, they were both heading the exact same way. Maybe it was just that Roman was going to the same place. It was a fairly obvious conclusion as the shop was close by, and - now that he wasn’t concerned about being caught - he remembered Patton saying he was a short walk away from their home.

Logan was only a little disappointed but managed to push it away. It wasn’t important, him and Roman were simply going about their days, and it wasn’t as though they were friends; they were barely even acquaintances.

As they neared the small plaza with the few shops, Logan saw as Roman turned off into a small closed off square that was well known for where the ‘delinquents’ spent their time. Why would Roman even be considering going there?

Logan continued his slower pace as he walked past. All he could see Roman standing casually within the group, holding a lit cigarette. It was almost as if he belonged.

Disgust rose within Logan as he went on his way. The image was practically burned into his mind as he walked around the shop, gathering everything on Patton’s list. He felt so victorious, finally having something to hate Roman for. Finally, something that can stop him fixating on Roman so much.

He smiled to himself. Yes, he was soon to be over him. It didn’t matter that the situation didn’t exactly make the most sense, because Logan was just so happy to just have this one small detail.

A bag full of chocolate, sweets and other unhealthy snacks in hand, Logan made his way back home. He passed by the square, and he couldn’t help but stop.

Anger bubbled from within as he stared around at the unlit cigarette butts littering the floor, accompanied by the various discarded bottles of drink and spray cans. The various pieces of graffiti covering the brick walls only added to the atmosphere. He was angry that someone who could be the focus on all his attention would be someone who would indulge in such vices. He was frustrated that, even though he wanted to hate Roman for seeing him like that, he just couldn’t bring himself to.

A gust of wind blew through, and a can of spray paint rolled into his foot. Logan looked at the offending object with disdain. The anger he felt was somehow outweighing his rational thought.

The bag of treats was dropped to the side as Logan lunged for the can. He went to throw it, but felt the weight. It was not empty.

Yet another lapse in judgement occurred as Logan stalked over to an empty portion of the wall and began coating it with words.

A few minutes passed, and Logan was coming back to his senses. He was breathing heavily, and his hand and forearm ached a little from holding down the spray can for so long. He stumbled back towards the plastic bag.

“What…?” He felt nauseous. “Oh god, why did I do that? I… I need to get back. Patton’s waiting. I need to get back, right now.” He dropped the now empty can into the plastic bag, picked it up and walked away as fast as he dared. He did his best to not rouse suspicions of anyone, but he couldn’t help his eyes from darting around, as though he was expecting to get caught.

Closing the front door and then his own bedroom door were some of the most relieving things he’d ever had the opportunity to do. Logan leant his back against the door, breathing deeply and his eyes closed. He was such an idiot, letting his emotions get away from him like that. But he knew he was one of the least likely candidates if anyone were to theorise who would have done such a thing. Unless he was somehow seen as he was leaving. But no one was around, so that was extremely improbable.

“Logan?”

Logan physically jumped, and his eyes flew open with fear. He quickly dropped the spray can into the bin next to his desk before opening the door to a concerned Patton. “Hello Patton. Apologies for taking longer than expected. Here is everything you asked for.” He held out the bag for Patton to take but was a little confused when it wasn’t immediately taken from his grasp.

“Are you okay? I heard you come in, but you didn’t respond to me.” Patton stared his brother down, almost as if he was trying to read every thought running through his mind.

Logan offered a gentle smile, “Yes, everything is fine. I was simply lost in some thoughts, nothing that you need worry about.”

Patton tentatively took the bag, “Alright… But don’t forget that you promised.”

“I know I did.”

The admission that he remembered the promise seemed to cheer Patton up significantly, “Alright, I trust you, Logan. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow and I’ll totally pay you back for all this!” Logan rested against the door frame as he watched his excitable brother run back into his room to grab a prepared bag and rush down the stairs.

He smiled at the thought of Patton rushing down the street. His brother was so different from him, but that simply made his brother much more likable. It explained how Patton was far more popular than him, and how he’d made his way into Roman’s circle of friends.

Of course. He was back. Roman just couldn’t be off of his mind for long.

Logan sighed in frustration as he threw himself into the chair in front of his desk. There was only one outlet for this that he trusted, and it wasn’t what he’d just experienced. Pulling out a notepad from the shelf under his desk, he began to write on a blank page.

He ended writing by desk light as the sun had gone down as he was writing. The spray can was joined by several crumpled pieces of paper that were just not good enough, the final folded piece was sat neatly in the centre of the desk. It was almost like the desk lamp was providing it a spotlight.

Logan, himself, had moved to lay on his bed, looking up at the ceiling. He was working through a dilemma in his head. He turned over, eyes closing as he yawned. Maybe he’d decide in the morning. He needed to get rid of this thing. Shooting up out of bed and throwing on a jacket, Logan grabbed his keys and went out for a walk to clear his head. The desk lamp’s spotlight was the final light in the room, it’s circle of light empty.

A figure moved under the cover of darkness, darting away from any light. They kept looking out for any one who may be considered a witness to their movement. The figure darted around the high wall, carefully stepping around glass bottles to reach the back wall. They seemed to hesitate for a moment at the wall, before heading back out the way they came with the same wariness as before.

Hours passed, and it was early morning. Someone made their way into the square, only to be greeted by an unfamiliar piece of graffiti on the wall and something attached to the wall underneath it.

They stepped closer, slightly nervous about what it was. As he approached, he noticed a familiar name written. He pulled out his phone as he read the amateurly graffitied words. He was originally intending to text, but quickly decided that a phone call would be much quicker. So he held the phone up to his ear, eyes unable to tear themselves away from the wall.

“Virgil?” The voice over the phone was tired, yet clearly worried.

“You had better get over here. There’s definitely something you need to see…”


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the weekend passed too quickly, and it was time to head back to school. Logan kept to himself as usual, trying not to rouse suspicions of anyone. He didn’t know why, but he definitely felt more eyes on him than usual. Whenever he attempted to find the source of this, there was nothing he could find out of the ordinary.

Half of the week passed uneventfully, nothing completely out of the ordinary, which made Logan relax. Perhaps he was going to be fine, the events of the Friday and Saturday were to be forgotten and pushed aside. That would be the best-case scenario.

Thursday was progressing as normal. Logan headed into the crowded cafeteria, took a seat as far away from people as possible and began to eat. He avoided looking around at anyone, though he couldn’t help his gaze from moving over to the popular group as they were the loudest. At least, that was his rationalising thought.

The fact his attention was immediately brought to Roman wasn’t an important fact. It was merely something that was bound to happen, no matter his situation, due to his position at the centre of the group. It was also that he was usually the loudest and therefore would become his primary focus of attention whenever it was caught.

He sighed. At least he’d have time away from him in the library, where he could clear his thoughts. Logan stood and disposed of any trash he had, before heading out into the calmer corridor.

What he didn’t notice was someone following behind him, until…

“Logan! Wait up!”

Logan stopped in his tracks and spun around, only to be face-to-face with Roman.

He stood in front of him, his usual smile gleaming, “Mind if I tag along?”

Logan huffed and continued on his way, “I have a feeling that even if I said no, you’d persist. So, I suppose.”

He couldn’t see it, but Roman’s grin widened significantly before he followed along behind. There were several moments where Roman attempted casual conversation with Logan but was shut down quickly. Roman decided he had to do something drastic.

“So…” He started, attempting to get Logan’s attention, “I actually wanted to see if you could help me figure out something, because y’know, you’re smart.” He watched carefully, noticing how Logan preened a little at the compliment. Here goes nothing… Roman took a breath, “I was just wondering if you could help me with figuring out this mystery of these weird poems that keep turning up with my name on them…”

Silence fell. Roman kept walking, but soon noticed that Logan had stopped dead a little earlier. His face was still, eyes wide, as if he was in shock. Roman couldn’t help but smile to himself.

He approached the statue-like student, “Logan? Hello? You alright there?”

That seemed to wake him up. Logan’s face was burning as he adjusted his bag a little and kept walking, only faster this time, “I would be, happy to help you, with this dilemma.”

Roman couldn’t help but laugh a little, “That’s wonderful to hear, but uh… Logan?” He called out to the retreating boy.

“What?”

“The library is right here. You walked right past it.”

Upon entering through the library’s double doors, Logan’s usual sense of calm was nowhere to be found simply due to the fact he had a shadow behind him. He headed directly for a table tucked away at the back of the room and settled down in a chair, expecting Roman to sit opposite him.

Roman wasn’t one to be predictable, however. Logan had realised this from his multitude of observations he’d taken, and so Roman taking the seat right next to him shouldn’t have been so much of a surprise.

To say Logan was shaken was an understatement. He couldn’t have predicted this happening, but he still attempted to maintain a composed front.

“So, you said something about mysterious poems?” Better to get this over with as soon as possible.

Roman almost jumped, “Oh, right, yes! I have them in here somewhere…” He dug around in his bag before producing three pieces of paper. He smoothed each out onto the table and set them before Logan, “These are what I’m talking about. They just started appearing on Friday, but I just can’t figure out who they’re from! Maybe you’ll know something?”

Logan pretended to be reading them for the first time, carefully deciding on what to say next. He didn’t want to lie to Roman, but he couldn’t just tell him that he wrote all of them in moments of weakness and emotional outbursts. Instead, he pretended to be analysing them. As he read, he noticed Roman sliding closer to him as if to read over his shoulder.

He lowered the papers and adjusted his glasses, “So, where did you find all of these?”

“Oh, well, that’s the funny things about these notes, all of them came from different places.” Roman was clearly enjoying this too much, but Logan’s mind was too busy running over details that he shouldn’t give away to really take his behaviour into account.

“I am assuming all the locations had something to do with you, or else the notes wouldn’t have been found.” Logan was yet to take his eyes away from the poems.

The silence stretched out between them as they both expected the other to speak. Logan was thinking intensely how to get out of this situation he was currently in. Roman was simply observing the other boy.

Roman reached out and pulled one of the poems towards himself, “Y’know, these are written beautifully…” He spoke as if it were just a casual thought that crossed his mind. Logan’s gaze turned towards his companion, taking in the soft expression that Roman was giving the paper as he read over the words yet again, “I’ve read them many times, over and over, each reading almost bringing me to tears… I just wish I could find the person who wrote them and tell them all the things I’ve felt as I received their wonderful gifts. You know what I mean?” Suddenly, Roman locked eyes with Logan for the first time since they’d sat down.

Logan swallowed hard, “I can’t say I do know what you mean, but I’m sure whoever wrote these specifically for you would be happy to hear such complements of their work…” What was he saying?! He needed to stop immediately before he said too much, but the captivating gaze was somehow unlocking something within him.

Roman smiled gently, “You really think so? I’m glad you feel that way.”

Logan’s brain finally caught up. He paused, “What do you mean?”

A sly grin was growing across Roman’s face which made Logan feel like he should get up and run as far away as he could get. Roman rested his head in his palm, elbow on the table, “I know they’re all from you, Logan.”

He was gone. His brain short-circuited. How could he know this? He’d been so careful, hadn’t he? There was no way- “Where’s your evidence?” Logan’s voice shook a little as he responded.

“Are you admitting it? I won’t tell you until I hear it from you…”

Irritatingly arrogant as always, but he couldn’t just flat out lie about this. Under Roman’s cocky gaze, he felt his control over the situation fading fast and there was nothing for him to grasp onto to get it back. He felt his body deflate as he sadly gave in.

“I wrote them.” He muttered under his breath.

“Hmm? What was that?”

Logan snapped, springing onto his feet as if to leave, “Fine! I wrote them! Are you pleased with yourself? Are you done trying to make a fool out of me?”

Roman also rose to his feet. He reached over to grab a hold of Logan’s arm, stopping him from going anywhere, “No, Logan, I wasn’t trying to do that, I promise. I just…” He sighed and let go of the other boy, “I wasn’t thinking. I thought you’d be alright, you were so composed, I thought you knew I knew… I, I’m sorry. But please. Give me a chance to explain everything.”

Logan watched as the arrogant façade faded in front of his eyes. Instead, he was left with a genuinely upset boy looking at him pleadingly. He just couldn’t bring himself to walk away, and he was extremely curious as how he’d figured it out. Silently, he took his seat again and indicated for Roman to do the same, who scrambled quickly to join him. “I’ll listen.”

“Well, you were there for the first one, obviously. In class on Friday? Well…”

Roman began to explain everything.


	5. Chapter 5

It had truly begun during rehearsals for the school’s current production, where he’d had the time to read the poem away from the rest of his group. He wasn’t joking when he said that the poems had almost made him cry. He was too excited to focus for the rest of the session and was the first one out of the room when they were set free.

That’s how he ran into Patton.

“Patton! Patton!” Roman called out, running over to the boy who whirled around dizzyingly quick.

“Hi Roman! What’s got you all excited?”

Roman stopped just in front of him and showed him the note. They both squealed over the note and began theorising who it could have possibly been. Patton began walking in the direction of the library, with Roman following absent-mindedly as he was too busy thinking of all the possibilities for the note’s originator.

Soon enough, they’d made it and Roman remembered he had a book he needed to return.

“Oh, Patton, you mind waiting for me?”

“Of course! Can you send my brother out for me? He should be in there.”

Roman nodded as he walked through the double doors. He admitted it was a welcome surprise to find Logan seemingly interacting with other people. Roman had noticed the other around a lot, always alone, and he would be lying if he said he wasn’t the slightest bit concerned about his fellow student.

So, the sudden biting remarks that were sent his way from what he thought was a friendly joke were a shock to the system, leaving Roman in a state of confusion. The faculty had been able to coax him out of it and he’d returned his book as quickly as he could. Being able to leave alongside Patton had helped his mood but hadn’t been able to push Logan from his mind.

This meant that when Patton called him in a hurry, he was more than ready for a distraction.

“Roman! I found another one! For you! In my bag! I haven’t read it! But do you want me to bring it? Do you want to come get me? What do you want to do about this?” Patton was rattling off words as quickly as they were coming to his mind, and Roman was having trouble keeping up.

“Patton. Calm down. Speak slower, what do you mean by “another one”?”

“Another poem! With your name on it!”

Roman shot out of bed, “WHAT?! Patton! You need to bring this to me, immediately. No wait, you should come around and read it with me. Maybe between the two of us we can-“

He was cut off by someone yelling up to him. His parents wanted him to go and find his brother yet again.

“But we know where he is. He’s probably out with his friends again.” He yelled out the door before putting his phone back to his ear, “Sorry about this, Pat. I’m probably going to have to go. I’ll message you in a bit.”

Roman was ultimately convinced to go and collect his idiot of a brother by bargaining that he could have Patton stay over for the night. With that, he made his way over to the one spot he knew his brother’s friends would spend their time.

“There you are.” He walked into the graffitied square. His eyes were firmly set on the purpled hair of his brother. “Virgil. I’ve been told to come get you. Dad wants you home.” Roman also snatched the lit cigarette away, “And he also said you’d be grounded if he found out you’d been smoking again.”

Some of the gathered kids snickered, “V, you never told us you were a part of royalty?”

Virgil shouldered the hoodie that was falling off him before attempting to snatch back the cigarette from the boy standing in front of him, “I don’t associate with them any more than I have to. Give me that back.”

“No.” Roman held it further away from him. “You’re coming with me.” The cigarette was dropped to the ground and Roman grabbed Virgil’s arm, dragging him away from the group and back towards their house. Soon, he let go of his arm and stopped them both, “are you alright?”

Virgil nodded, his voice slightly breathless, “Yeah… yeah, I’m fine.”

“Good. You really shouldn’t let them talk you into going there, you know that?” Roman started a detour, turning back on himself.

“I know… It’s just that, it’s scary, saying no to them. I don’t want to know what they’d do if I did…” Virgil was retreating into himself as he followed.

Roman wrapped an arm around Virgil’s shoulders, pulling him close, “I can understand. But you’re with me now! I’ll protect you!” He raised an arm into the sky, but Virgil’s soft laughter to the side of him caught his attention, “What’s so funny?”

“You know I’d be the one actually fighting if something did happen…” The dark-clad boy reached into his pocket and slipped a knife out, “I mean, I am the one that’s armed at all times.”

Roman rolled his eyes and spun in front of his brother, walking backwards, “Virgil! I told you to get rid of that, why don’t you ever listen to your brother?!”

“Probably because he’s a drama queen?”

Roman flipped his hair, “How dare you? And to think, I was going to get you something. Now, you’ll get nothing!”

They’d made a large circle back to the local shop, coming at it from the opposite side. They both entered, playfully arguing back and forth. Eventually, they made it home - the smell of cigarette smoke having died away a little due to the time they’d spent getting back home, meaning all Virgil got was a stern talking to.

Roman messaged Patton, who was there less than 10 minutes after receiving the message with his bag of snacks.

They spent all night reading and re-reading, theorising and dreaming about who it could be and who Roman wanted it to be. Eventually, they both passed out.

Roman was rudely awoken by Virgil calling his phone. But Virgil never called. Phone calls made him worry, made him anxious. So, it must be important.

For the second day, Roman was shooting out of bed. He woke Patton too.

“Patton! Patton! Wake up! This is important! Get up!”

Eventually, both boys managed to get themselves up and dressed before sprinting out of the house. Roman knew he’d find Virgil in the same spot as yesterday, and so rounded the corner at full speed.

“Virgil! What’s wrong? What’s happened?!”

Virgil simply pointed at the wall, where Roman saw the fresh graffiti.

“Oh…”

Scrawled across the wall were the words ‘A Sheep in Sheep’s Clothing’ and underneath, another piece of folded paper with Roman’s name written across it.

“What… what does it mean?” He grabbed Virgil’s arm and almost shook him, “What does it mean, Virgil?!”

“I don’t know!” Virgil ripped himself out of Roman’s grip, readjusting his hoodie, “It’s new. I didn’t see it yesterday…”

“Ro, you… you don’t think that…” Patton was panting next to him, having caught up just a moment before, “I mean, that… that looks like another…”

Roman almost crashed into the wall with how quickly he moved to grab the paper. Patton and Virgil watched over Roman’s shoulders as he ripped open the note. Virgil pulled back before the others.

“Really? Poetry? Under that?”

All three of them looked up at the graffiti, trying to decipher what it all meant. Roman was the first to move to leave, “We can figure this all out back at the house! Come on, you two!”

Roman exited, not waiting for either of other boys to follow him. Virgil and Patton shared a look, questioning what they should do next. Virgil, for the first time, really noticed the other boy. His cheeks heated, and he ducked his head, pulling up his hood at the same time to try and hide the blush. He walked past Patton and muttered something about needing to catch up with Roman. He left slower than his brother.

Patton hung back, watching after Virgil, a soft smile on his face. He found the slight shyness of the other adorable, yet he got a sense that the older of the Prince brothers wasn’t always like that. Patton was intrigued and really wanted to find out more about him, but first took a photo of the graffiti before he left. There was something about it that seemed a little familiar, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it. He quickly ran to catch up with the other boys.

Once caught up, Patton made sure to be walking right alongside Virgil, continually trying to engage him in conversation. Roman noticed but didn’t think anything of it. It was nice that someone decent was trying to make friends with his brother. What was more of a shock was that Virgil was actually working with him, responding and talking with Patton. As they walked, Patton kept gently bumping into Virgil, a gentle smile on his face each time. Virgil responded in kind, but rarely.

They were both getting along far too well, and Roman was getting a little annoyed. Sure, he was happy for them, but this was supposed to be about his problem! But, he pushed it away. Just be happy for them, he told himself. As they turned onto Roman’s street, Patton made Virgil laugh for the first time and - as he glanced at the reflection in a window they passed - Roman could see the pure joy on Patton’s face, as well as the soft embarrassment on Virgil’s.

Roman led both of the boys up to his room, where they set up camp in order to try and figure out the mystery. He took the desk chair, while Virgil and Patton took a seat on the edge of his bed.

After at least an hour of talking and thinking, they were no closer to a solid conclusion.

Roman spun his desk chair in circles as he groaned loudly, “I don’t even know what kind of person we’re looking for anymore!” He stopped so he was directly facing the other two occupants of his room, pouting as he noticed neither were really paying attention.

Both of them were laying across his bed. Virgil was leaning up against the headboard, his eyes fixated down to the boy laying in his lap with a hand gently carding through his hair. Patton was enjoying himself, his eyes were closed, and a gentle smile played across his lips.

“Okay, Roman.”

Roman sharply turned to look at Logan, taking himself out of the story he was retelling.

“I am truly enthralled by how well our brothers were getting along, but I think there was a point you were attempting to make. Perhaps you could get back to that?” Logan’s tone was sarcastic, his expression particularly uninterested.

Roman scoffed, “But, it builds up the world! It’s background information!”

“But it doesn’t affect any of our situations, at least not relating to these.” Logan gestured to the poems.

“Fiiiiine.” Roman sighed, adjusting himself in his seat, “So, as I turned to look at the others…”

Roman waited for a moment before he stood and cleared his throat loudly. “Look, it’s great and all that you two are so happy right now. But, we were trying to sort out my love life, so if we could get back to that!”

They both looked up at the frustrated Roman. Patton reluctantly pulled himself up and made his way over to the plastic bag of snacks he’d brought with him, while Virgil attempted to reason with Roman, “Come on. We’ve been doing this for ages, we’ve been through everything that we can all think of. We just have to giv-“

“AHA!”

Both Prince brothers jumped and turned towards Patton. Roman’s hand flew to his chest, while Virgil curled himself up. Patton, meanwhile, turned to both of them, plastic bag in hand.

“I think I have something!”

Roman was breathing heavily, “Did you have to give us a heart attack before you told us!?”

“Sorry, just excited…” Patton jumped onto the end of Roman’s bed, “Okay so, you know that graffiti that we found? Well, like, I felt like I’d seen something that was related to it, but I wasn’t sure what it was, and I didn’t wanna talk about it in case that I never did remember what it was.”

Roman sat opposite Patton, eagerly awaiting this new piece of information, “But you’re bringing it up so you remember now?!”

“Yup!” Patton proudly pulled out the plastic bag he had. “and it’s right here!”

Roman stared down at it, confused. Virgil, meanwhile, had moved closer and was now examining the bag.

“What I mean is, it’s inside here. Look!” The bag was turned inside out to show there were smudges of paint all over the top half of the bag. “This is the same colour as the spray paint used!” Patton pulled up the image he took so the brothers could see for themselves.

As Roman was almost shoving his face into the image and the bag, Virgil pulled back, “So, where did you get the bag?”

“My brother!”

Patton’s face fell as he realised something. Roman’s head snapped up to look at Patton, expressions of pure horror and joy mixing into something on his face. Virgil looked between the two, not quite understanding.

“Well, does that mean he’s probably the poem guy?”

“Wait.”

Back in the present, Roman paused to look at Logan, pouting at having to stop at the dramatic conclusion.

“Are you actually trying to tell me that you came to the conclusion I was the person writing you notes, purely because of some paint I accidently spread inside a plastic bag?” Logan was sceptical.

“That’s wasn’t everything in its entirety but thank you for the confirmation!” Roman winked, relishing in the way Logan’s face reddened significantly. “I supposed I can quickly run through the rest of the details.”

Roman quickly described how now that the thought was in his mind, Patton was able to remember that Logan was a fan of poetry. Roman eventually recalled that they had recently been researching Churchill and famous quotes for a history lesson, which is where the spray-painted quote came from. All the pieces were just falling into place. Now all that was left was some real, physical evidence.

Patton acted as a sort of spy for the Prince brothers as he got back to his house, and he went snooping through Logan’s room - finding the paint can still in the bin.

“And from there, we realised we had solid evidence and it was just a matter of finding a good time to approach you about it.” Roman leant back in his chair, looking victorious and seemingly waiting for Logan’s response.

There was a moment of silence as Logan considered all he’d been told. It all made sense, he had been sloppy covering his tracks, but perhaps he’d always wanted Roman to find out. But, if that was the case, one thing was still nagging at him.

Logan toyed with his glasses, “So, what do you wish to do with the information you’ve gathered?” His eyes were trained back down at the table, at the three poems lain out in front of him. “Do you wish to share all of these to the school? Make a fool out of me?”

The gentle hand that rested on his shoulder pulled his gaze up towards Roman. Anything else he may have wanted to say got caught in his throat once their eyes locked. The soft look on Roman’s face mixed with a sense of concern was captivating. Roman rested his unoccupied hand atop Logan’s own before he spoke.

“Logan. I don’t know why you seem to believe I am out to destroy you in some way, but I can assure you I am not. I promise you that.”

There was an element of sincerity that Logan had never seen before in his fellow student. He still couldn’t seem to speak, so instead he nodded.

It was as if there was a magnetic pull that extended between Logan and Roman, pulling them together slowly. Logan’s eyes darted around Roman’s face, looking for any sign of rejection, but found none. Just Roman slowly getting closer to him as well. Logan was just about to let himself go and give into whatever Roman was going to do, when…

“Class is about to begi- Oh!” Logan shot back with such force that he almost fell off the chair. He looked up, eyes wild only to be greeted with the librarian’s face. She apologised and left them alone, just letting them both know that classes were about to start, and they should be on their way. Logan smiled awkwardly as she left.

Roman offered a hand to him, already on his feet, “Sorry about that. Hope being interrupted didn’t put you off?”

Logan grabbed a hold of it, steadying himself as he stood up. He readjusted his clothing, trying to not make eye contact due to his burning face, “I can’t say it has. You do seem to be implying that there will be another time to complete… whatever just almost happened.”

“Only if you say yes.”

The way Roman’s eyes shined was throwing Logan away from his usual stoic nature. His thought process was gone when it came to the popular student, something he was slowly getting used to. “I can’t see why saying no would benefit me in this situation.”

Both of them walked out of the library, chatting easily. Roman informed Logan of his plan to take him out on a date this weekend and Logan was slightly sceptical but allowed him the opportunity due to his curiosity - and not because he’d already agreed. They reached Logan’s next classroom first and Roman raised their joined hands, which Logan had forgotten about until that moment, in order to place a kiss upon Logan’s.

“Until this weekend, my love.” With that, Roman left for his own class. Logan stood at the doorway, face red but somehow feeling the calmest he’d felt in months. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he finally turned and entered the room.

The weekend came and went. The date was successful. Logan had Patton as his own personal cheerleader, and he helped him in every way he could, even walking with Logan over to the Prince household. Logan couldn’t help but be aware of the underlying motive that his brother had but decided to leave it.

It was so much of a success that Roman and Logan officially started dating the day after. Meaning that Monday was to be their debut to the rest of the school.

The morning of was fairly normal, if a little fast. But it was likely due to Logan dreading lunch period. He was managing to keep his composure on the outside, that was what was important. But as he made his way to the cafeteria and Roman came into view, something within him calmed. It would be alright, wouldn’t it?

He approached and stood next to Roman, who smiled at him warmly.

“Are you ready for this?”

“As much as I can be.”

Roman took Logan’s hand and gave it a quick squeeze. Logan slipped his hand out before he was lead into the room. It was loud, he was almost certain it was louder than usual. They approached the table, and Patton came into view. Both of them were there. This would be fine.

Roman approached first, “Hello everyone!”

The group turned to Roman, fake smiles on their faces. Logan’s stomach twisted into knots as he felt all of their eyes slowly move onto him and the smiles drop. Some were confused, some looked disgusted. Only Patton kept smiling.

The student closest to Roman patted the seat next to him, “Roman, come and sit down.” They dropped their voice into a loud whisper, “The loner kid is like standing right behind you. I think he’s stalking you.” Logan’s gaze dropped to the floor. This was not okay.

Another student joined quickly from the other side of the table, again in the faux whisper, “Oh my god. Do you think he’s the weird note writer? Or do you think he’s jealous?”

A few laughs shot around the table. Logan was suddenly not hungry. He knew this was going to happen. Of course, he wasn’t going to be accepted. Roman would realise right now how different they were, how different their circles of friends were, how incompatible they were. And he’d be alone again. It’s better that way. It’s how it’s supposed to be. It’s-

His thought was cut off as he heard a loud voice right next to him and an arm wrap around his shoulders. Logan looked up to see Roman looking furious, the inhabitants of the table were sitting in a shocked silence and the rest of the cafeteria had gone silent.

“Come on, Logan.” Roman pulled Logan along with him as he turned and made his way out of the door.

“Wait for me!”

A voice came from behind them. Logan looked behind to see Patton fussing over getting out of the table and before making his way over. As he walked over, Patton seemingly got distracted by something and made a detour.

Roman continued moving, not allowing Logan to watch where his brother was going.

What he missed was Patton making his way over to Virgil, who was clearly uncomfortable. As he approached, he managed to hear a bit of the hushed conversation. Hearing how Virgil’s supposed “friends” were throwing insult after insult at both him and his brother made him angry.

“Oh look, here comes one of the Prince’s lackies now.” One of the group looked up.

“What does his highness desire?” A second chimed in, “Perhaps his brother to join his council?”

The kids all started laughing as Virgil just continued to shrink in on himself. Patton merely grinned as he stood behind Virgil, “Oh, Roman doesn’t want anything.” Patton shouldered Virgil’s bag and grabbed a hold of his arm, “I just want to spend time with Virgil. C’mon!” He tugged on the other student’s arm urgently.

Virgil scrambled to his feet. He wasn’t even upright for a second before Patton dragged him away, practically running with him out of the door.

“Sorry! But I don’t think I’ll be bringing him back!” Patton yelled across the room. He didn’t let go of Virgil’s arm until they were both a safe distance away from the cafeteria.

Virgil was still in shock. He couldn’t form words, instead he just stared at Patton, who only smiled.

“C’mon, we have to go find the others!” Instead of grabbing him, Patton offer out a hand.

Virgil considered it for a moment, as if unsure of what it meant. Then a smile crossed his face and he grabbed it, running ahead of Patton, causing him to squeal in surprise. “Come on, Patton. Gotta keep up!”

They both ran, hand in hand until they spotted Roman and Logan sat under a tree in a secluded area of the courtyard. They slowed down to a walk as they approached.

Logan was the first to look up and see the pair. “Ah, found him.” His voice grabbed Roman’s full attention, who then looked up as Patton and Virgil sat down opposite them.

“Nice spot.” Virgil looked up at the leaves, as he attempted to casually slip an arm around Patton. His plan ultimately failed when Patton leant against him, grabbing a hold of his arm at the same time.

Roman snorted out a laugh, causing Virgil to glare at him. Both began an argument that Patton then attempted to defuse between giggles. Logan watched all three of them, his back against the tree. He could feel the weight of Roman’s hand resting on his. Maybe it would be okay. Maybe he wasn’t supposed to be alone.


End file.
